Walk into The Allium and it seems like any other independently owned Beltline restaurant. With its light and airy décor, mid-century furniture and staff of energetic young servers, the 38-seat restaurant fits in well with other nearby spots like Bar Von Der Fels, Ten Foot Henry and Native Tongues.

But while it may not make much difference to the average diner, The Allium is a different kind of restaurant. As Calgary’s first worker-owned restaurant, it runs on a cooperative structure, ensuring that everyone working there has a stake in the business. The bartender shaking up your cocktail? She’s an owner — or is at least on her way to becoming one. So is the guy chopping up your salad, the people putting food on your table, and the folks washing the dishes in the back. And while that may not change the flavour of the food on the plate, it does change the vibe of the experience, all for the better.

The Allium is the brainchild of Jared Blustein, who has a background in academics, studying the ways that worker-owned businesses can result in happier, more creative and better-paid workers. Wanting to put his studies into practice, Blustein initially did not want to start a restaurant. Having worked in the food industry he knew that restaurant structures tend to be hierarchical and often driven by the ego of the chef or restaurateur — the polar opposite of his business plan. But the restaurant industry is what he and his cohorts knew, and eventually he put together a group of 12 partners to get The Allium going.

Blustein and four other original partners each bought into the business as permanent owners. The remaining workers are all there on a probationary basis and after six months they’ll be able to buy in to become full owners. In the meantime, everyone makes an equal living wage. Some members like chef Alex Hamilton and bartender Priya Kaila focus on the areas where they’re most skilled, other float around, waiting tables one night and washing dishes the next.

But none of that really matters if you’re hungry and just looking for something to eat. Because it fits well with the owner group’s ethos, The Allium is a vegetarian restaurant, with dishes representing a wide cross-section of culinary influences and comfort foods. The menu is designed for sharing with small plates of local brassicas with a charred scallion relish ($11) and sourdough jalapeno pretzels with stout mustard and smoked salt ($9) and larger format dishes like mushroom spaetzle with bitter greens and purple kraut ($19) and a thicker version of a yellow curry mulligatawny served with pakoras ($18). To fit with the concept, the restaurant tries to support local producers as often as possible and keeps the prices within the realm of affordability while still making sure that everyone involved is paid properly.

“All of our people are excited, they’re bringing in ideas and new ways of doing things. If someone has a great idea it can be adopted immediately,” Blustein says. “I think that shows in the product that we’re ultimately pumping out. People are noticing the love and care and compassion and excitement behind the space and the food and drinks.”

The Allium is located at 211a 12 Ave. SW and can be reached through theallium.ca. The restaurant is open for dinner Tuesday through Sunday.

Cibo, the much loved family-friendly Italian restaurant at 1012 17 Ave. SW has undergone a facelift: the main floor of the two-storey restaurant is now Cibo Café and Wine Bar. The reinvented space, which opened yesterday will offer breakfast, Phil and Sebastian coffee and quick meals and drink service throughout the day, with a counter service setup. This will also be the place to source out Cibo’s new line of grab ‘n’ go meals, including sandwiches, pre-made pasta and personal pizzas. The redecorated upstairs room will still offer table service and casual Italian fare.

In other restaurant news, chefs tend to fixate and even obsess over certain ingredients and techniques — we’ve all seen cooks that can’t get enough of sous vide or won’t stop talking about their beloved sourdough starters. To celebrate this fascinating phenomenon, Food Tourism Strategies and Rouge Restaurant are hosting a special event called Chef Obsession on Sept. 15, featuring eight different chefs exploring their obsessions. Why does SAIT’s Michael Allemeier love barbecue so much? What is it about canola and honey that gets WinSport’s Liana Robberecht so excited? Buy your tickets through chefobbsession.com to find out.

Also on Sept. 15, Eau Claire Distillery fans can get involved in a little “voluntourism” by joining in the company’s annual barley harvest. Volunteers are invited to come out to the Foothills to help thresh barley (the distillery uses a traditional method with horses) and will be treated to a light lunch and spirit tasting. Those looking to make a day out of it can also buy a ticket to that evening’s Harvest Celebration Dinner, with delicious autumn fare prepared by chef Judy Wood. Tickets to the dinner are $98 each and can be purchased at eauclairedistillery.com.

Elizabeth Chorney-Booth can be reached at elizabooth@gmail.com. Follow her on Twitter at @elizaboothy or Instagram at @elizabooth